Dear Lifehacker,
I actually got two of something I ordered at Amazon. Do I have to send the extra item back? I've heard it's legally yours if someone sends you something without you asking for it, or if your company deposits more money than usual into your bank account. What should I do?

Sincerely,
Double Vision

Dear Double Vision,
It's a tricky situation, isn't it? You ordered one item and two showed up in your mailbox. We're assuming you've checked the order form and packing slip and you actually only paid for one, and only one is shown in your order history, so all signs point to a botched order on Amazon's side. Still, you've brought up two different points with two different answers. Let's tackle them one at a time.

First, Report It and See What Happens

Whether you're approaching the situation ethically or you just want to cover your butt in case something happens later, the first thing you should do is report the mistake to the company in question. Whether your employer accidentally doubled your paycheck or Best Buy shipped you five iPads when you ordered one, the best course of action is to notify whoever made the mistake. In some cases, it'll work out in your favor anyway, while in others the results may not be so great, but ultimately no one can accuse you of stealing something or hiding the truth if you've been upfront about everything. Ethically speaking, your obligation is to report the error and then see what the other party wants to do about it. Legally, however, you have a few murkier options.

Unsolicited Goods Shipped to Your Home Are Yours to Keep

According to the Federal Trade Comission, unordered merchandise that is shipped to your home is yours to keep and can be considered a free gift. This is largely in order to stop companies from shipping you stuff and then sending collections agencies after your money later on, after you've either used it, tried to return it and failed, or gotten rid of it. The guideline allows for companies to make honest mistakes and request you help them resolve them, but the FTC even says you're under no legal obligation to report the mysterious merchandise in the first place, but they—like we—suggest you at least notify them of their error (and of your legal right to keep it.) Photo by Akira Ohgaki.

So let's pretend you ordered a new laptop and the manufacturer sent you two by accident. Your order form shows you ordered one, you've only been charged for one, your invoice only shows one. Still, there are two in the box. Technically, the second one is yours, and that error will work out in your favor. If the company requests you return it though, you should, provided they pay for shipping or compensate you (forcing you to pay for shipping or other "handling fees" is another well-documented scam.) We'd still recommend reporting it though, mostly because some businesses may find some underhanded way to punish you for their mistake or get their money's worth anyway, like charging your payment method on file and leaving it up to you to try and fight them for the money back. Even so, when it comes to unordered goods, the law is on your side.

Extra Money Paid to You Isn't Really Yours

Unlike unsolicited merchandise, laws that govern what happens when an employer overpays you vary from state to state. One thing all of those state laws have in common is that they universally give employers the right to reclaim the extra funds. Some states are lenient, and only allow employers to reclaim the extra money through installments, garnished from future paychecks unless you can pay it all back up front. Other states give more control to the employer and let them take it all back whenever they choose, or worse, fire you or sue you for the money even though it was their mistake. Photo by 401(K) 2012.

When it comes to being overpaid by a current—or even a past employer, the best thing to do is to bring it up as soon as you notice the error. Don't spend the extra money (yes, that needs to be said) and keep it to the side ready to return to your employer. Most states don't allow employers garnish your wages so much that you fall below minimum wage, but that's cold comfort if you need the money you normally make. Just keep this in mind: if your employer overpays you and you choose to keep it, you're gambling. Bring it up immediately, pay it back as soon as possible, and move on. When it comes to found money, you have the ethical approach and the pragmatic approach to dealing with it. We suggest you do your best within reason to find the owner, including notifying any nearby authorities (especially for large amounts) and at least try to return it before you keep it.

Bank Errors are Not Your Friends

If a bank makes a mistake in your favor, the same rules apply as employer overpayment: banks and other financial institutions have a very long time in which they can find their errors and reclaim their lost funds, and there are few (if any) legal situations where you're allowed to keep or spend the extra money as a result of their mistake. The same rules apply to taxes and tax refunds—if your refund is larger than it should have been due to an administrative error, don't expect to be able to keep it. Laws governing bank and other financial errors vary from state to state, but all of them give the benefit of the doubt to the organization that's lost money, not the accidental beneficiary. Again, the best course of action here is to report it, don't spend it, and just keep it to the side until they take it back or fix their error. Photo by Alpha.

Be Forthcoming, But Let The Company Clean Up Their Own Mess

Even though we come down firmly on the "report it and then see what happens" side of things, we're not suggesting you take time and energy to hound a bank into taking their money back or fixing their own mistakes. Reporting their error and keeping whatever benefit you got from it to the side is enough. There's no need for you to call them every day until they fix it—you've done your part by being forthcoming and willing to get the problem resolved. At the end of the day, whether it's extra merchandise or a few extra dollars in your bank account, what you really want to do is take the high road and protect yourself from any future legal or underhanded action by the company that made the mistake. Whatever you do, don't get attached to the extra items or start to feel entitled to the erroneously desposited cash—you were just fine before you got it, you'll be fine when it's gone again.